Skadden attorney Nigel Tampton honored after role in 41-year wrongful conviction exoneration
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Summary
Nigel Tampton of Skadden received an Adams Pro Bono Publico award for more than 2,600 pro bono hours and for leading litigation that vacated a 1985 conviction for Edward Wright, leading to Wright's release on July 31, 2025, after 41 years incarcerated.
Nigel Tampton, a litigation attorney in Skadden—s Boston office, was honored by the Supreme Judicial Court standing committee on pro bono legal services for sustained pro bono work and for his role in winning relief for Edward Wright, whose 1985 conviction was vacated after decades of post-conviction litigation.
Tampon (identified in remarks as Nigel Tampton) has devoted more than 2,600 hours to pro bono matters, according to the ceremony. Presenters highlighted two landlord-tenant matters and his broader mentoring of junior lawyers, but the nominating materials and remarks emphasized his lead role in the post-conviction work for Edward Wright.
According to remarks at the ceremony, Wright was convicted in 1985 by a Hampden County jury. Tampton and a Skadden team, working with the New England Innocence Project and co-counsel Radha Natarajan and Stephanie Hartung, began work on the case in 2019. The team spent hundreds of pro bono hours drafting a 119-page brief. In April (year specified in remarks), Judge Jeremy Bucci of the Superior Court granted Wright—s sixth motion for a new trial, finding the prosecution had failed to disclose exculpatory evidence and that a detective had testified falsely at trial. A single justice of the SJC denied the Commonwealth—s petition for appeal; the conviction was vacated and the Commonwealth chose not to retry the case. Edward Wright was released from prison on July 31, 2025, after 41 years of incarceration.
Tampton said the result required exceptional nonprofit lawyers, sustained firm support and a substantial team effort. He credited co-counsel at the New England Innocence Project and Skadden colleagues; he described his firm—s contributed billable-hour equivalents at over $7,000,000 and said the firm provided the flexibility needed for the work. Tampton also acknowledged personal supports that made his sustained work possible.
The committee presented Tampton with the Adams Pro Bono Publico award in recognition of persistent and dedicated pro bono representation that led to Wright—s release and exoneration.
